The Wrap Up – Trump to address Congress

Last week the TSX closed down after seeing several weeks of gains.  This was not a surprise since every week cannot be a winner.  The decline was largely and broad-based.  As an example, Royal Bank of Canada delivered more than $3 billion profit for the latest quarter, and its share fell by 1.65%, mirroring the week at the TSX.

Canadian inflation for January 2017 compared to January 2016 was 2.1%, rising from 1.6% for December 2016.  Much of the increase is attributed to the price of gasoline.

In the United States, the markets continued their upward rise.  The Trump administration set its economic growth rate goal at 3%, and, if achieved, it would be the highest growth rate since the world financial crisis in 2008.  The markets did not react negatively to the Federal Reserve’s comments that they would counteract tax cuts with interest rate increases to temper any inflation the proposed tax and regulatory cuts could cause.

In Canada, fourth-quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) along with a Bank of Canada monetary policy announcement will dominate releases and news.

In the U.S. Q4 GDP will also be announced along with housing data, personal income and spending levels.  The most important event this week will surround President Trump’s address to Congress on today for the first time.  Without all the details Bloomberg says “Trillions of Dollars are at Stake*” https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-02-27/trump-s-not-quite-state-of-the-union-address-risks-trillions

Do not forget, MARCH 1^ST (Wednesday) is the RRSP contribution deadline.

Have a great week,

Kevin

 

 

* *Any opinion expressed herein is based solely upon the author’s current analysis and interpretation of such information, is subject to change and does not necessarily represent the opinions of Harbourfront Wealth Management Inc. While we have made every attempt to ensure the information contained in this document is reliable, Harbourfront Wealth Management is not responsible for any errors or omissions, or for the results obtained from the use of this information. All information is provided “as is,” with no guarantee of completeness, accuracy, timeliness or as to the outcome to be obtained from the use of this information, and is without warranty of any kind, express or implied.”

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